Never Replace Face-to-Face

Posted by:
Jordan Schwartz
CEO, Pathable



Perhaps it sounds heretical coming from the president of an Internet-based “social media company”, but I don’t think on-line social networks and communities can ever replace the power and value of face-to-face meetings.

At this point, you might be asking “but isn’t that your business?” No, it isn’t. Here’s why:

The value that on-line social networks for events provides come from the way they can enhance and extend face-to-face meetings, not replace them. Here are three simple ways:

1. Increased Attendance: On-line social networks are uniquely suited to set off viral marketing cascades: one person posts a note to Twitter or Facebook and all of their friends see it. If only a small percentage of those respond or “retweet”, you can quickly build a chain reaction where your news or message can flow through to an audience of thousands. By leveraging this network effect, you can get the word out about your event in a much more effective way than traditional ad buys or other channels.
2. Increased Satisfaction: If your attendees are coming to meet each other and build new relationships, they will judge the value of your event on their success at achieving their goals. If they walk away with a passel of new connections and relationships, they’ll be back next time. If they don’t, they may not.
3. Extended Duration: Typical face-to-face events last anywhere from several hours to several days. It’s a rare event that lasts all year. But that’s exactly what on-line communities can do. And not only do they extend your event for months after it’s over, but think about what kind of value a 24 / 7 tradeshow can offer your exhibitors!

With Thankgsiving wrapped up here in the U.S. and more holidays on the way, we’ve had many opportunities to see how emotionally impactful getting together with people face-to-face can be. Looking someone in the eye, hearing the silence between their words, feeling the grip of their hand: these powerful experiences can’t be matched by words or pictures on the screen.

But if you want to get the most out of the face-to-face experience, taking advantage of all that on-line communities and social networks have to offer is essential.

None of this is to say that virtual meetings and hybrid meetings (i.e., meetings with both an on-line and physical component) don't have value: they do! The way information can be transmitted and ideas exchanged without the accompanying travel costs (both time and money), are fantastic and these types of meetings will continue to grow with good reason. But will they replace face-to-face completely? Never.

Attendees at your events have a limited time to see each other, so they want to make the best use of the time they have. How can you help? Provide them with the tools to get to know each other before they arrive, to set up meetings in advance and to stay in touch when the event is over.

And that is enhancing and extending the face-to-face meeting.

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To hear more from Jordan, be sure to attend PCMA's 55th annual meeting: Convening Leaders in Las Vegas, Jan 9-12,2011.

Jordan's session, Successful Online Communities for Events, will help you identify best practices in building an online community, create synergy between face-to-face and online communities, and utilize online activity to improve year-round relationship with your community.